Middle management and frontline workers worst hit as 7,000 posts disappear in past six months
By Vivienne Russell
The majority of local authorities in England are planning to cut jobs over the next 12 months, with middle management posts hardest hit.
A Local Government Association survey published this week revealed that almost 7,000 local government jobs have been lost over the past six months, while 60% of councils are planning to cut posts over the next year, with a further 24% saying they are unsure.
This gloomy outlook was compounded by Unison, which claimed morale in the local government workforce had hit an all-time low. A major staff survey conducted by the union cited worries over job security as the main reason for plummeting confidence.
According to Unison’s survey, published on May 14, a third of local government staff said they felt less secure in their jobs now than they did a year ago, with almost half expressing concern for the long-term viability of their jobs.
The LGA blamed the recession for the staff cuts. LGA vice-chair Sir Jeremy Beecham said cutting jobs was always a ‘highly unpleasant’ decision.
‘Town halls are being forced to look at almost every aspect of their spending. A large number of councils are cutting posts in middle and senior management. We would expect councils to make efficiency savings before cuts and they will be trying to protect posts that provide effective management,’ he said.
‘It is particularly regrettable to have to cut frontline staff, but this demonstrates the bleak financial situation that councils are in.’
The survey showed that 88% of respondents believed middle management would be most affected by future staff reductions, although frontline staff and senior management were also likely to be affected.
The 7,000 jobs that have already been lost affected middle management and frontline staff equally, the May 11 survey said.
Beecham added that this year’s pay settlement needed to be affordable to avoid the need for further redundancies.
‘If the pay settlement is set too high, then local authorities will have no choice but to lay off staff, which neither the unions nor the employers want to see.’
But Heather Wakefield, Unison’s head of local government, dismissed this view. She told Public Finance: ‘What this is about is keeping council tax low in the run-up to a general election. This is a political decision, which comes rather conveniently at a time of economic crisis.
‘If you look at the local government settlement this year, it’s way above inflation… We know that a lot of councils still have a lot of money in reserve and we know that they’ve been making more savings as the government has required them to.’
She added that the workers were ‘the efficiency saving. Our members have become reduced to a kind of cost item. I don’t think there’s any respect for them.’
Local government pay talks are due to resume on May 18. Unison has rejected a 0.5% offer and is angry at the employers’ demand of a May 31 deadline for agreement.
Among councils planning on making job cuts are Leeds, Nottingham and Plymouth city councils.
Leeds is planning a net reduction of 450 posts over the next year. Richard Brett, joint leader of the council and executive member for resources, said the reductions reflected a ‘general tightening of the belt overall’.
The council is not anticipating any compulsory redundancies and hopes most of the losses can be secured through natural wastage, such as people taking early retirement.
Nottingham City Council said the effects of the recession, coupled with the need to invest in child protection services, meant it was not possible to set a balanced budget for this year without a reduction in workforce.
The council is looking to lose 350 posts but has accepted a ‘significant number’ of voluntary redundancies, leaving 150 posts at risk. Human resources director Ben Browne told PF: ‘Employees who remain at risk of redundancy will be able to apply for vacancies on a ringfenced basis within the council when they are advertised at the end of May.’
Plymouth is planning to make up to 200 redundancies in the coming year because of ‘severe financial pressures’ and falling income. A spokeswoman said: ‘Departments have been identifying areas in which staff savings can be made but detailed proposals are still subject to consultation with staff and unions.’
Phil White, head of negotiations at Local Government Employers, told PF that he did not recognise the portrait of morale painted by Unison’s survey.
He said turnover rates in local government were lower than average, which, when coupled with the fact that the average age of employees was increasing, ‘points to a stable long-term, workforce’.
